Microsoft Office Landing onto Android and iOS, Real Soon?

Nice idea is that business people prepare their documents anytime and anywhere on their iPads or Android tablets while traveling, Wording, Exceling and PowerPointing, isn’t it? Yes, it is!

To cheer things up, this dream might be translated into reality real soon, as the rumor mill recently churns again that software giant Microsoft is pushing forward its plan rolling out the mobile editions of its Office Suite, for Android and iOS, with the nearest one stating that Office for iOS shall hit the shelf in this February or March, while Office for Android come onboard in May. That said, Microsoft has not yet thrown any word on this. And now time machine advances into the midst of April, we still do not see any light shed on this.

We can’t help raising the question: will they come eventually? People vary on this.

Those who champion the idea of extending desktop Office onto other mobile platforms state that: Firstly, Office on Demand, one shinning feature in MS’s newly released Office 365, which enables subscribers to log in from any Windows 7 or 8 powered device to directly stream the virtual versions of the full Office Suite, sadly does not work on iOS and Android powered devices; secondly, to thwart the concept of Office for mobile platform, MS’s CEO Ballmer singled that the Office Web Apps already can fit the niche, as iPad holder can easily access Office apps online via its browser, which is an sufficient experience, while the fact is that Office Web Apps technically offers the chance for users to interact with Office apps, but that experience is far from being superior than a native app can deliver; Thirdly, ever since the debut introductions of iPad and Android tablet, a variety of alternatives of MS Office have sprung up to fill the void. For example, iWorks from Apple which includes Pages, Mumbers and Keynote, and third party apps such as DocsToGo and QuickOffice, all deliver a similar set of capacities, or even some hints of compatibilities with MS Office Suite in file formats. That being said, none of those alternatives provides the same level of experience that the comprehensive set of MS Office Suite does, they just get things done. So it may conclude this way, if MS does not take further action to usher in its iOS and Android edition of Office Suite, it is losing a potential huge market. Its monopoly of the PC market in the PC era is fading in the post-PC era, meaning it will never be a dominant role of the mobile market, and what’s more, ignoring iOS and Android means leaving millions of users without Microsoft Office.

While those who do not prefer Office for iOS and Android incredibly are holding one same opinion, that is presence of Windows 8 and the surface of Surface, the former is the successor of the wildly popular Windows 7, and the latter, the carrier of the former as a wholly MS DNAed product. MS is seemingly risking its future on Windows 8 and Surface tablet. The very reason people think MS isn’t readying an mobile version of Office Suite is that MS has an undeniable ambition on Windows 8 and Surface tablet, which MS considers as the game-changing ace. In a much simpler perspective, MS is betting on Windows 8 to regain its already declining prowess and is counting on Surface tablet to reshuffle the mobile sector, or MS thinks Windows 8 is still the triumph, especially to those enterprise users where a damn lot of money sits, and Windows powered tablet is the future of tablet realm. If this turns out to be true, why create an iOS version and Android version of Office Suite while a dominantly majority is switching to Windows tablet or phone again? Why would MS do that to shrink its Surface shipment? They can enjoy Office at its best as they do on desktops and laptops. So, MS, in another way, is saying that if you cannot leave behind Office Suite, you go to Windows tablet!

Well, both are quite reasonable, aren’t they? However, at least up to this moment, it seems that people are having a noncommittal thought on Windows 8, better not another Vista. As of Surface tablet, its high price tag is already scaring many consumers away. All in all, it might be proper to draw a conclusion: It’s a sink or swim bet, which translates into: if it swims, MS laughs at last and continues to keep its Office Suite Windows exclusive, if it sinks, then catches up to bring Office Suite to iOS and Android communities.